Alderman urges snow removal within two days

Ald. Brian Pincott is calling for faster cleanup of city bike lanes and will be pitching the idea to council today.

Ald. Brian Pincott wants to see bikes lanes in the downtown core cleared within 48 hours to help riders navigate streets safely.

The rookie Ward 11 alderman will be pitching the idea to council today with a notice of motion to recognize designated bike lanes in the city for Priority Two snow removal — which means the lanes would be cleared within two days.

Right now the lanes are not even prioritized for snow removal, though many of the streets they are on are low traffic streets and classified as Priority Three or Four streets, meaning they may not see snow removal for several days after a snowfall.

“To me this is about identifying a gap and filling it. We’re trying to persuade people to ride their bikes more — it’s important,” said Pincott, estimating that the number of bike commuters in the downtown core has more than doubled over the past five years.

One of Pincott’s mandates when elected was to identify more areas where bikes could be ridden downtown, and this is part of making that happen year-round, he said.